Bathroom design and interior decorating of the bathroom have achieved a significant level of importance in the overall appearance of a home. Architects and homeowners today, therefore, are insisting that every detail of the bathroom appearance be decorative and precise.
Unfortunately, when it came to installing a new shower stall or tub, available shower hinges are in many instances not in conformance with the otherwise highly decorative theme of the bathroom. Shower hinges are typically bulky, exposed mechanical devices, leaving little to the imagination. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,745, issued to Roloff on Nov. 29, 1994, relates to a hinge for shower stall doors. The shower door hinge has two separate members held in place by a hinge pin (pintle). The first member has two axially aligned sleeves which receive an axially aligned sleeve of the second member. The hinge pin passes through the member's sleeves and defines the axis of the hinge about which the shower door can be swung. The hinge pin can be removed, having at one end an annular flange or head, while at the other end a screw thread for engagement of a screw. Thus the design of this shower door hinge leaves exposed the two member's sleeves, the pintle and screw. Further, there exists the possibility that the screw will eventually become unscrewed and work its way loose, such that the hinge pin will fall out and the shower door will fall off.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,588,181, issued to Sutton on Dec. 31, 1996, relates to hinge for a glass shower door. The shower door hinge is constructed having a "u" shaped clamping member which clamps onto the shower door, and a "h" shaped strip which attaches to a supporting wall. At the end of the "h" shaped strip away from the point of attachment to the wall, the strip is shaped to form a channel (sleeve) through which a pin is inserted. This portion of the strip has a cut-out section in which a portion of the clamping member, also shaped in the form of a channel (sleeve), is inserted. The clamping member and the strip are then connected axially by insertion of the pin. The pin creates a point of rotation for the hinge about which the shower door rotates. This shower door hinge design too leaves exposed the pin and channels in which the pin fits. Further, the pin may come loose and the clamping member, due to its design, may eventually lose its hold on the shower door with repeated use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,448,799, issued to Stein, Jr. on Sep. 12, 1995, relates to a panel hinge structure which can be employed to rotatably join two panel members such as a shower door and a shower enclosure assembly. The first member has extending from it an elongated web terminating in an axially aligned rod. The rod itself may be encased in a sleeve. The second member has an internal keyway which includes an axially aligned tubular channel. This tubular channel rotatably captures the axially aligned rod of the first member. The fit of the rod into the tubular channel creates the axis of rotation about which the hinge swings. A separate series of pieces, referred to as gudgeon clips, at the top of each of the first and second member prevents the rod from becoming disengaged from the tubular channel. The design of this hinge leaves exposed the rod of the first member. Further, if the gudgeon clips fail to work, become dislodged themselves, or even break, the rod will become disengaged from the channel and the shower door will fall off.
Thus, there is a need for a decorative shower door hinge in which the knuckle of the hinge is not exposed and which is protective of the glass door to which it is attached. The industry, as can be seen, has heretofore failed to provide such a shower door hinge having a concealed knuckle which is aesthetically pleasing and in conformance with contemporary design features.